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A Question Concerning Apparel

Greetings! I am pastor of St. Sophia Mission, within the jurisdiction of The Orthodox Catholic Church of America. Our jurisdiction has a diverse expression the

Message 1 of 1
, Jul 30, 2004

Greetings!

I am pastor of St. Sophia Mission, within the jurisdiction of The Orthodox Catholic Church of America. Our jurisdiction has a diverse expression the
Christian faith.

Recently I have been studying Indian Orthodoxy with an interest in exploring Christian tradition in an ancient form so as to avoid any theological error that
might have become attached to our faith over the span of centuries.

My mission is very small and those of us here are interested in a rediscovery of this ancient form of worship you enjoy. I have a question for anyone in this forum who might be able to be so kind as to offer assistance. Forgive me,
please, if this issue seems somewhat mundane...

Where might I find a source for Indian Orthodox style apparel? I have searched everywhere on the Internet, to no avail. All that I find are the Russian and Greek Orthodox items, but these are not appropriate for us and we do not use
them. Please understand we are not trying to "copy" Indian Orthodoxy, but merely have a desire to move away from the Roman style clerics and vestments we have been wearing for many years, that now seem inappropriate to an ancient faith expression.

The antique form of worship in the Orthodox Church in India is derived entirely from the Syriac Orthodox tradition. The Indians have not added or detracted to it; they have only translated commonly used liturgies into the native language Malayalam. Hence to understand the true roots of the spirituality and rituals of the church, we would suggest trying to understand the tradition it derives from. There are a number of web sites and books dealing with this tradition.

As for the vestments, these are available only from Kerala state in India. You can obtain the address of one of the prominent suppliers at http://sor.cua.edu/Misc/ChurchSupplies.html. However, they do not easily understand English and hence you may have difficulty in placing any orders without the help of somebody who knows the native language--Malayalam.

It is available in Orthodox Book Shops or the production centres at Changanaserry,Kerala, India. Tel.011 91 481 242 2214 Mr.Thomas is the manager.

We would like to bring to your kind notice that the Orthodox vestments are used in a particular contextual interpretation of the signs and symbols attributed to it. If it is not understood in its context it will be meaningless.

We would like to refer to you a book in English on this by Dr.Poulose Mor Athanasius Metroplolitan.It costs only $10.00 +S&H.
If you are interested please contact Very Rev. Kuriakose Corepiscopa Moolayil moolelachen@... Director, Mor Adai Study Centre & Vicar, St.George J.S.O.Church, Chicago.

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